Square can seaming head



Dec. 16, 1947. o. A. SCHMITT 2,432,815

SQUARE-CAN SEAMING HEAD Fil ed June 28, 1943 3 Sheets-Sheet j figicg.

Dec. 16, 1947, o. A. SICHMITT 7 2,432,815

SQUARE-CAN SEAMING HEAD Filed June 28, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet s Patented Dec. 16, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SQUARELAN SEAIVH'NGHEAD Otto A. Schinitt, Jersey City N. J., assi l qr to Continental Can Company, Inc., New Xork, 'N.]Y., a corporation of N ew York Application June 28, 1943, SerialNo..492;580

4. Claims. (Cl. 113-251) The invention relates generally to the art of can making and primarily seeks .to provide certain new and useful improvements in seaming head structure-sadapted for double r011 seam securin end closures on can bodies which are oblong or generally square in shape.

More particularly,the invention seeks to provide c rtain new and useful improvements in seaming head structuresrof the-type disclosed. in U. Letters Patent 2,271,152 and 2,271,;1-53 issued on January 2'7 1942 to Alfred L. Kronquest and jointly to the said Kronquestand Otto A. Schmitt. These patented seaming head structures were designed with the purpose in Vi w of assuring theformation-of seams which were uniforml tight throughout the whole periphery of the squareoroblong canbodies, much difiiculty having been experienced ltheretofore in providing seam structures'which were satisfactorily tight at all corners. Said patented seaming head structures each includearotor, a chuck member about which the rotor rotates and which is surrounded by a positioning lever guiding groove, four positioning levers arranged in diametrically opposed pairs and each being pivoted at an outer end on the rotor and having a roller at its inner end guidedin said groove, a-seaming arm pivoted intermediate its ends on each said lever, two diametrically oppositely disposed arms being equipped with first operation seaming rolls at their inner ends and the other two arms being similarlyequipped with second operation seaming rolls, and each said arm at its outer end being provided with anose engageable .bya cam positively rotated about the pivot center of the respective lever for at the proper time forcing the respective seaming .roll against the chuck for effecting a seaming operation. While these patented seaming head structures operate satisfactorily and have provided marked advances in the art it has been found desirable to reduce the size of 'the heads and thereby materially reduce the mass weight and the amount of metal necessary to beemployed in the manufactureof said-heads. It has been found thatthe mounting of the seaming arm actuating rotary cams for. rotation about the pivot centers of the positioning levers results in the provision of a much greater bulk of metal at .the positions of saidpivotal.mountingsand a much greater overall diameter of the seaming head than would otherwise be necessary. It isn-a purpose of the present invention to provide an improvedseaming'head structureof the character stated in which the ;parts are cooperatively arranged ina novel compact manner efiective to v 2 materially reduce the amount of metal necessary to he used in the seaming headstructure and also the overall diameter of said structure.

An object of theinvention is to provide a seaming head structure :of the character stated in which each positively rotatedcam effective to impart movement ofone of the seaming arms tow d th chu k i m un ed to n s d of t e pivotcenter of the associated positioning arm and approximately atthesame distance from thehead center as said-pivot center, thereby to materially reduce the overall diameter of the head and also shorten the necessary length of the respective levers.

Another obiect of the invention is to provide a seaming head structure of the character stated in which the outer end of each seaming arm is equipped with a large diameter roller which is engagedby the associated rotary cam for forcing the respective seaming arm carried seaming roll against the chuck, said-cam and roller engagement serving to minimize wear and avoid the effective leverage length changes which attended the cam and seaming arm nose engagement in the patented seaming head structures hereinbefore referred to.

With theabove ,and other objects in view that will hereinafterappear, the nature of the invention-will be more fully understood by following the detailed-description, the appended claims and the several views illustrated in the accompanyin drawin In thedrawings:

'Figure 1 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view illustrating a seaming head structure embodying the invention.

Figure-2 .is an inverted plan view of the seaming head shown in Figure 1, both second operation seaming arm actuating cam-s being broken away and one second operation seaming arm and positioning lever equipment being broken away.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view illustrating one lever and arm set and the associated rotary cam.

Figure 4.is,afdetail-plan view ofone of the sec?- ond operation set-rotary cams.

The herein disclosed seaming head structure may be stationarily mounted in a single seaming station machine or it may be one of aplurality of seaming heads carried by a rotor which rotates while the seeming operations are in progress. such a machineis disclosed in the U. S. Letters Patent 1,752,912 issued to A. L. Kronquest on April 1, 1930, and itis the purpose of the present invention to provide certainnew and useful improvements in seaming head structures of the type adapted for seaming square or oblong cans which render the heads so compact that as many as four thereof can be mounted on a single rotor.

When the seaming head structure is embodied in a machine in which a plurality of the heads are carried by a rotor it is employed in combination with a turret 5 which is rotatable with a hollow column 6 to which rotation is imparted by any approved means (not shown), said turret including peripheral pockets 7 for receiving the cans 8 which are to be positioned in cooperative relation beneath the seaming heads during the seaming operations. The usual vertically reciprocable supporting pads 9 are provided for supporting the cans in the turret pockets and for at the proper time lifting the cans into cooperative relation with the seaming devices and for lowering them after the seaming operations have been performed.

A casing H] is supported on the column 6, and at the upper end of the casing there is provided a bearing portion II which is rotatable about a sleeve l2 depending from a knockout pad actuator cam IS, the latter being keyed as at M to a stationarily supported column I5.

A center drive shaft I6 is mounted within the column 6, and the upper end of this shaft is spline connected as at IT to a drive sleeve l8 which is rotatable in anti-friction bearings I9 in an upstanding well 20 of the casing l and in anti-friction bearings 2| provided in the lower end of the bearing portion The driver sleeve has a ring gear 22 and a ring gear 23 flange secured thereto as at 24 and the purpose of these ring gears will become apparent as the description progresses.

The up er end of the casing 0 also is provided with a bearing sleeve 25 in which a clamp bearing 26 is mounted. A support sleeve 27 is keyed as at 28 in the clamp bearing 26 and has its upper end supported, as by the screw clamp collar 29 on the upper end of the bearing seeve 25. The sleeve 27 is provided with a plate enlargement 3|! at its lower end, and to this enlargement is removably attached a guide and chuck mounting plate 3|. A key 32 is inserted between the plates 30 and 3| and a chuck 33 is removably secured as at 34 to the plate 3|. It will be observed by reference to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings that the plate 3| is provided with a guide groove 35 which surrounds and follows the contour of the chuck which in this illustration is oblong in shape and provided with rounded corners.

The chuck 33 is provided with a bottom recess for receiving a knockout pad 36 which is removably mounted at the lower end of a knockout rod 37 which extends upwardly through the sleeve 27 and has a cross head 38 adjustably secured on its upper extremity as at 39. The cross head is provided with an actuator roller 45 which engages in an actuator groove 4| in the previously mentioned cam l3.

The plates 30 and 3| are disposed within a bottom recess 42 in a rotor 43 having anti-friction bearing as at 44 on the supporting sleeve 27 and including an upwardly extending sleeve portion 45 which surrounds the supporting sleeve 27 and has a driver gear 46 keyed on the upper end thereof as at 47.

A sleeve 48 is rotatable about the rotor sleeve extension 45, having bearing thereon as at 49, and the sleeve 48 has a driver gear 50 keyed on its upper end as at The sleeve 48 has a ring ear extension 52 at its lower end.

At four equidistantly spaced points near its "periphery the rotor is provided with bearings 53 in each of which is rockably mounted a shaft 54. Each shaft 54 is removably secured in its bearing as at 55 and has a positioning lever 56 extending inwardly therefrom in the manner clearly illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings. At its free end each lever 56 is equipped with a roller 57 which engages in the guide groove 35 for the purpose of causing the inner end of th lever to follow around the contour of the chuck as the rotor is rotated about the chuck. A seaming arm 58 is pivoted intermediate its ends as at 59 on each lever 56, and it will be observed by reference to Figures 2 and 3 of the drawings that the inner and outer ends of each seaming arm overlie the inner and outer ends of the respective positioning lever. Two of the diametrically oppositely disposed seaming arms 58 carry two first operation rolls 69 at their inner ends, and the other two diametrically oppositely disposed seaming arms carry two second operating seaming rolls 6| at their inner ends. The several seaming rolls 6!] and BI are removably secured on the ends of the seaming arms by shoulder screws 62. At its other end each seaming arm 58 is bifurcated and equipped with a large diameter roller 63 mounted in and extending from the bifurcation. Each roller is engaged by a rotary cam 64 which is secured as at 65 on a shaft 66 rotatably mounted in a bearing 67 provided therefor in the rotor. It will also be observed by reference to Figures 2 and 3 of the drawings that each bearing 67 is in the form of an eccentric sleeve and that the shaft 66 rotatable therein is disposed beside and in parallel spaced relation to the adjacent positioning lever mounting pivot 54. Each of the cam shafts 66 is extended upwardly through its bearing and is equipped at its upper end with a spur gear 68, all said gears being enmeshed with and driven by the ring gear 52 in the manner clearly illustrated in Figure 1.

The two diametrically oppositely disposed rotary earns 64 which are associated with the first operation seaming arms have the effective arcs 59 thereof provided with three steps 70, and the effective are of the other two diametrically oppositely disposed second operation cams preferably have their effective arcs 7| equipped with two steps 72. It will be obvious that by adjusting the bearing sleeves 67 rotatably about their axes the cooperative relation of the respective cams and the seaming levers engaged thereby can be varied so as to properly position the respective seaming rolls.

It will be obvious by reference to Figure 1 of the drawings that the ratios of the enmeshing gear sets 22, 46 and 23, 5|] varies so that during the rotation of the casing I0 and turret 5 about the axis of the shaft l6 differential speed rotation will be imparted to the rotor 43, 45 and the sleeve and ring gear unit 48, 52, thus causing the rotor to rotate about the relatively stationary chuck 33 and the several pinion gears 58 and the attached earns 64 to rotate on the rotating rotor. During rotation of the rotor the rollers 57 cause the inner ends of the positioning levers to follow the contour of the chuck and thus always properly place the seaming rolls 60, 6| relative to the external surface of the chuck. Rotation of the cams 64 causes the first and second operation seaming rolls to be forced against the chuck for properly performing the seaming function, the first operation encased;

39JI1S1SBFVHIS tormove the first-operation seam-c mgi-rells againstnthe chuck in three successive steps, and the second operation cams preferablyv serving.- toimove the. second operation seaming rolls against. the chuck in two successive steps. The. particular seaming head herein disclosed is designed to accomplish the searning function in200 of movement of the turret, leaving 160 for the introduction of the non-seamed cans into theturret, the lifting: ofthe cans into operative-relation withthe seaming devices, the lowering,- ofsaid cansand the removal from the/turret of the seamed cans. This seaming function is accomplished with 2 turns of a seaming head during which the before mentioned three step inwardmovement of the first operation seaming rolls is effected within 1 turns of the head and the before mentioned two step inward movement of the second operation rolls is effected within one turn of said head.

During the rotationof the seaming head and the casing structure li'iabout the axes of the centen-cclumn the stationary. cam l3 servesin the manner well known in the art to operate the knockout; rod 3}.

By v positioning the cam shafts 66 beside the seaminglever pivotsfii, close to the periphery 0 1" ndat substantially the same dis tance from therotor center a-s-said lever pivots 543,1 theoverall diameter ofthe seaming head educed-$ .0 t. has e n found that by this compact arrangement a seaming head twelve inches in diameter can be provided whereas with the previously known arrangement of the cooperating parts in the seaming head it was necessary to provide a head at least sixteen inches in diameter for performing the seaming operations on the same size cans. It will be obvious that this compact arrangement of parts results in the provision of a seaming head which is materially reduced in mass weight as well as size and that positioning levers and seaming arm-s of shorter length can be utilized. It has been found that a reduction of approximately thirty per cent in the mass Weight of the seaming head can be provided by forming the seaming head in the manner herein disclosed.

It should also be apparent that in providing large diameter rollers 53 for engagement with the rotary cams 611 instead of the previously employed relatively sharp nosed cam followers engagement between cam surfaces and the seaming levers in a manner for maintaining constancy of leverage will be assured whereas in the previous uses referred to objectionable changes in effective leverage tended to decrease the efficiency of the seaming operations. The engagement of the cams with the large. diameter rollers also avoids the considerable amount of wearing away of engaging surfaces which was experienced in the provision of cam followers of the type previously employed.

In order to properly maintain contact between the large diameter rollers 63 and the control cams with which they cooperate, the pin on which each said roller is mounted may be extended as at 13 and connected by a retractile spring "M with an anchor pin 15 depending from the rotor 43 beside the respective control cam opposite the side of said cam engaged by the particular roller. See Figures 2 and 3.

It is of course to be understood that the details of structure and the arrangement of parts may be variously changed and modified with- 1. In a seaming head-"structureof thecharacter described, a chuck surrounded by a guide. groovefollowing the contour of the chuck, a rotor rotatable. about the chuck, a plurality of positioning lever each attached'at its outer end to,

a shaft rockably mounted on the rotor for swinging movement about an axis which parallels the axis of the rotor, each said. positioning lever carrying a roller at its inner end engaging in said guide groove, a seaming arm pivotally mounted intermediate its ends on each levef with the inner and outer ends of each said arm overlying the inner and outer ends of the re,- spective lever, a seaming roll carried at inner end, of each arm for cooperation with.

said chuck, a rotary cam engageable with the outer endiof each seaming arm and mounted on a cam shaft which is rotatably mounted on the rotor separate and apart from the rackably.

mounted-shaft to which the positioning lever on which the particular seaming arm is mounted is attached and paralleling said rockably mounted shaft, the axes. ofboth said shafts lying side by side in the direction of rotation of the rotor and the cam shaft axis being spaced from the rotor axis a distance approximately the same as the distance of said rockably mounted shaft from said rotor axis, and de vices for imparting complete and continuous rotation to the cam carrying shafts and the rotor during each seaming operation.

2. In a seaming head structure of the character described, a chuck surrounded by a guide groove following the contour of the chuck, a retor rotatable about the chuck, a plurality of positioning levers each attached at its outer end to a shaft rockably mounted on the rotor for swinging movement about an axis which parallels the axis of the rotor, each said positioning ever carrying a roller at its inner end engaging in said guide groove, a seaming arm pivotally mounted intermediate its ends on each lever with the inner and outer ends of each said arm overlying the inner and outer ends of the respective lever, a seaming roll carried at the inner end of each arm for cooperation with said chuck, a rotary cam engageable with the outer end of each seaming arm and mounted on a cam shaft which is rotatably mounted on the rotor separate and apart from'the rockably mounted shaft to which the positioning lever on which the particular seaming arm is mountedis attached and paralleling said rockably mounted shaft, the axes of both said shafts lying substantially in an arc struck from the center of the rotor, and devices for imparting complete and continuous rotation to the cam carrying shafts and the rotor during each seaming operation.

3. In a seaming head structure of the character described, a chuck surrounded by a guide groove following the contour of the chuck, a retor rotatable about the chuck, a plurality of positioning levers each attached at its outer end to a shaft rockably mounted on the rotor for swinging movement about an axis which parallels the axis of the rotor, each said positioning lever carrying a roller at its inner end engaging in said guide groove, a seaming arm pivotally mounted intermediate its ends on each lever with the inner and outer ends of each said arm overlying the inner and outer ends of the respective lever, a seaming roll carried at the inner end of each arm for cooperation with said chuck, a rotary cam engageable with the outer end of each seaming arm and mounted on a cam shaft which is rotatably mounted on the rotor separate and apart from the rockably mounted shaft to which the positioning lever on which the particular seaming arm is mounted is attached and paralleling said rockably mounted shaft, the axes of both said shafts lying side by side in the direction of rotation of the rotor and the cam shaft axis being spaced from the rotor axis a distance approximately the same as the distance of said rockably mounted shaft from said rotor axis, each rotary cam carrying shaft having rotative bearing in an eccentric bearing sleeve which is rotatably-adjustably mounted in the rotor, and devices for imparting complete and continuous rotation to the cam carrying shafts and the rotor during each seaming operation.

4. In a seaming head structure of the character described, a chuck surrounded by a guide groove following the contour of the chuck, a rotor rotatable about the chuck, four positioning levers pivoted at their outer ends at equidistantly spaced points on the rotor adjacent the periphery thereof and having rollers at their inner ends engaged in said groove, four shafts rotatably mounted on the rotor one beside and spaced apart from each lever pivot and spaced from the rotor center a distance not greater than the distance between the rotor center and each of said pivots,

each said shaft having a pinion gear on one end and a cam on the other and said cams being arranged in diametrically oppositely disposed first and second operation pairs with each first operation cam having three steps each followed by a dwell portion and each second operation cam having two steps each followed by a dwell portion, a seaming arm rockably mounted intermediate its ends on each lever and having a large roller rotatably mounted thereon at one end engaged by the adjacent cam and a seaming roll at its other end movable against the chuck by roller and cam engagement, and devices for imparting continuous rotation to the rotor and simultaneously to all said pinion gears.

OTTO A. SCHMITT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 665,397 Brenzinger Jan. 8, 1901 805,736 Lindgren Nov. 28, 1905 877,480 Beyer Jan. 28, 1908 1,660,547 Clift Feb. 28, 1928 1,819,250 Lange Aug. 18, 1931 2,083,401 Ross June 8, 1937 2,271,152 Kronquest Jan. 27, 1942 2,271,153 Kronquest Jan. 27, 1942 

